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Working From Home Works for Disabled People

Hours

Dear Labour Party,

or, Dear whoever is reading this.

I’ve worked hard since 16. But now, as a disabled person living with a stoma, chronic fatigue, joint pain, and the ongoing impact of long-term illness and multiple surgeries, staying employed has rarely been about effort. It’s been about endurance. And more often than not, it’s been about surviving discrimination, ignorance, and a lack of flexibility.

A bright and modern home office space is visible, tucked under a sloped attic ceiling with a large skylight window. A light wood desk is positioned against a white wall, featuring two large computer monitors on adjustable arms. The left monitor displays what appears to be a video call or a person, while the right monitor shows a darker interface, possibly for photo or video editing, with a small window showing an interior room. A webcam is mounted on top of the right monitor. On the desk are a keyboard, mouse, a white pair of headphones, a black speaker on a stand, and a glass of water. A comfortable-looking grey office chair with a white base is pulled up to the desk. To the left of the desk, under the window, is a white radiator and a potted green plant. In the lower-left corner, a grey sofa or armchair is partially visible, indicating a cozy living area nearby. To the right, a tall, white bookshelf with glass doors is partially seen, holding various decorative items. The floor is a light wood.

I’ve lost jobs, not because I couldn’t do the work, but because I took too much time to recover from surgery or because employers couldn’t offer the basic accommodations I needed.

After every recovery, I picked myself back up and re-entered the workforce. But each time came with new barriers: delays, stigma, and the burden of explaining my medical history over and over again. I’ve watched colleagues surpass me simply because they could show up in person every day, while I had to weigh my physical health against income.

I’m far from alone. In the West Midlands, 23.8% of people aged 16–64 are economically inactive, and 29.4% of those cite long-term sickness or disability as the reason.

Meanwhile, the region has one of the highest benefit claimant rates in the UK, around 8.2%, nearly double the national average. But the assumption that disabled people don’t want to work is simply false. Many of us are desperate to work.

We just need the system to stop being so cruel.

The barriers we face aren’t just structural, they’re dehumanising. Being told you’re too ‘unreliable’ because you have hospital appointments. Being denied the chance to work from home because of outdated policies. Watching roles, you know, you could do, be handed to someone with fewer qualifications, just because they’re able-bodied.

The Solution: Flexible, Remote Work

Working from home isn’t just for the “COVID-era”. It’s a proven accessibility tool. For disabled people like me, it can mean the difference between inclusion and isolation.

Here’s why:

  • No commuting reduces fatigue, pain, and exposure to inaccessible environments.
  • Flexible hours will allow us to schedule ourselves around symptoms, flares, and treatments.
  • Custom environments will mean we can work with our tried and tested, ergonomic tools and technology.
  • Mental health improves in a safe, familiar space where we don’t have to ‘mask’ or overperform.
  • Discrimination drops when work is outcome-based rather than visibility-based.

The Potential Impact

Research suggests that just by making 5% more jobs remote, the UK could significantly reduce the disability employment gap. A National Bureau of Economic Research paper found that even a 1% rise in remote roles increases employment of disabled workers by 1%.

Think about that. One in every hundred disabled people out of work could return with just a tiny shift in policy.

There is a new growth plan set to bring 100,000 jobs to the West Midlands.

  • 5%? That’s 5,000 people living with a disability or chronic illness in work. Enough to reduce the percentage of economically inactive people due to disability from 29.4% to around 28.5%.
  • 10%? That’s 10,000 people employed, bringing the rate down even further to approximately 26.46%.

This is an opportunity to do things differently. If we’re investing in the future of work, remote options must be part of that plan.

Many of the jobs being created, admin, payroll, customer service, digital marketing, design, social media management, content writing, data entry…can be done remotely. These are jobs some disabled people are qualified for and want to do.

Why People Work and Still Claim

We also need to acknowledge that working doesn’t always mean earning enough.

In the West Midlands, thousands of people are both working and claiming Universal Credit because of low wages and unstable hours.

A Call to Action

If you’re an employer, policymaker, or just someone with influence, please listen:

  • Build remote flexibility and work from home roles into your hiring strategy.
  • Invest in assistive technology and inclusive onboarding.
  • Trust disabled people when they say what they need to succeed.

Remote working isn’t a luxury, it’s access. And for many of us, it’s hope.

Let’s not waste the opportunity to make the workplace fairer not just for me, but for the thousands of disabled people across the West Midlands and the UK who deserve the chance to thrive, not just survive.

Signed,

A disabled woman who works full-time from home.

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